Coping with Concurrent Crises in Lebanon: For an Inclusive National Social Registry to Protect the Vulnerable

Dagher, Leila and abboud, ali and sidani, ola (2023): Coping with Concurrent Crises in Lebanon: For an Inclusive National Social Registry to Protect the Vulnerable.

Abstract

This brief assesses the response of the Lebanese government to the pandemic and other concurrent crises on vulnerable populations. It provides a discussion of the major challenges in mounting a wide-scale response to alleviate the social and economic repercussions of the various crises. The work highlights two main shortcomings: 1) the lack of information (data) to guide any relief or social safety net program, and 2) the limited scope of already existing programs, mainly due to budgetary constraints. We argue that putting in place a unified digital social registry that covers all residents in Lebanon is a necessity. Based on observed vulnerabilities in the past three years, we urge the government to prioritize adopting and implementing a universal national social protection strategy to better protect the disadvantaged population. Equally important is the need to ensure that the financial sustainability of these programs in the medium to long term (once Lebanon enhances its fiscal capacity) by decreasing reliance on foreign aid and shifting towards viable domestic social spending.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: social protection; unified social registry; lebanon; poverty
• Subjects: H - Public Economics > H1 - Structure and Scope of Government > H12 - Crisis Management; H - Public Economics > H5 - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies > H53 - Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs; H - Public Economics > H5 - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies > H55 - Social Security and Public Pensions; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty

References

Abu-Rish Z. (2021). Lebanon’s Pandemic in Context. CCAS Newsmagazine, June 2021.

Barca, V., Hebar, M., Cote, A. (2021). Inclusive Information Systems for Social Protection: Intentionally Integrating Gender and Disability. SPACE series, March 2021.

Central Administration for Statistics (2019). Labor Force and Household Livelihoods Conditions Survey, conducted by the Central Administration for Statistics (CAS) Lebanon, 2019.

Central Administration for Statistics (2022). Lebanon Follow-up Labor Force Survey, conducted by the Central Administration for Statistics (CAS) Lebanon, 2012.

Dagher, L. (2021). A Transparent and Effective Cash Assistance Program: Dream or Reality? Lebanese Center for Policy Studies, Policy Brief.

Dagher L., Nehme R. (2021). Lebanon’s Misguided Government Subsidies are Quickly Eating Up Its Foreign Reserves. International Policy Digest. 2021, Feb 18.

Dagher, L., Abboud A., Sidani, O., Abi Younes, O. (2022). “For Inclusive and Fair Covid-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon: Synthesis Report.”

Dagher, L., Jamali, I., Abi Younes, O. (2022). “Advancing Evidence-Based Policy in Crisis Management: The Case of Lebanon.” https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1s6_NZcHYizpyt5imV_t-ww90iQgZXWKk

Dong J., Wu H., Zhou D., Li K., Zhang Y., Ji H., Tong Z., Lou S., Liu Z (2021). Application of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence in COVID-19 Prevention, Diagnosis, Treatment and Management Decisions in China. Journal of Medical Systems. 2021 Jul 24;45 (9):84.

ESCWA (2021). Multidimensional Poverty in Lebanon (2019-2021): Painful Reality and Uncertain Prospects, 2021.

Fernandez Y. L., Mendez C. C., de Oca A. M. (2019) The Importance of an Integrated Social Registry as a Key Tool for the Planning and Redirection of Social Policy: The Case of the Social Information System in Mexico. http://paa2019.populationassociation.org/uploads/190056

Herzberger-Fofana, P. (2021). Humanitarian aid in a pandemic. The Parliament magazine. https://www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/news/article/humanitarian-aid-in-a-pandemic

ILO, International Labour Organization. 2016. Social Protection in Asia and the Pacific and the Arab States. Bangkok: ILO. https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---asia/---ro-bangkok/documents/publication/wcms_535032.pdf

ILO (2021). Extending Social Protection to Migrant Workers, Refugees and their Families: A Guide for Policymakers and Practitioners – Geneva: ILO, 2021.

Leite P., Karippacheril T. G., Sun C., Jones T., Lindert K. (2017). Social Registries for Social Assistance and Beyond: A Guidance Note and Assessment Tool. World Bank Group Working Paper, July 2017

Lowe et al. (2022) Humanitarian assistance and social protection in contexts of forced displacement: Effects on social cohesion. London: ODI https://cdn.odi.org/media/documents/ODI_Working_paper_HASP_in_context_of_forced_displacement-DIGITAL_IdSMaTP.pdf

Thompson, F., Hoang, M. L., & Ng, T. H. (2021). Harnessing the Potential of Big Data in Post-Pandemic Southeast Asia. Asian Development Bank publication, ADB Briefs # 174. https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/685011/adb-brief-174-big-data-post-pandemic-southeast-asia.pdf

Van der Auwera, M., A. van der Meerendonk, and A. R. Kumar. 2021. COVID-19 and Social Protection in Asia and the Pacific: Projected Costs for 2020-2030. Manila: ADB. https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/758046/sdwp-080-covid-19-social-protection-asia-pacific-costs-2020-2030.pdf

World Bank, 2017. Social Registries for Social Assistance and Beyond: A Guidance Note & Assessment Tool. Discussion Paper No. 1704. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/ar/698441502095248081/pdf/117971-REVISED-PUBLIC-Discussion-paper-1704.pdf

World Bank, 2020a. The power of data and evidence in delivering effective social assistance. World Bank Blogs. https://blogs.worldbank.org/developmenttalk/power-data-and-evidence-delivering-effective-social-assistance

World Bank, 2020b. Appraisal Environmental and Social Review Summary Appraisal Stage. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/850171593094913690/pdf/Appraisal-Environmental-and-Social-Review-Summary-ESRS-LEBANON-EMERGENCY-CRISIS-AND-COVID-19-RESPONSE-SOCIAL-SAFETY-NET-PROJECT-P173367.pdf World Bank (2021). Lebanon Emergency Crisis and COVID-19 Response Social Safety Net Project (ESSN). Accessed at https://reliefweb.int/report/lebanon/lebanon-emergency-crisis-and-covid-19-response-social-safety-net-project-essn

World Health Organization WHO, 2020. Impact of COVID-19 on people's livelihoods, their health and our food systems. https://www.who.int/news/item/13-10-2020-impact-of-covid-19-on-people%27s-livelihoods-their-health-and-our-food-systems

World Food Program WFP, 2022. WFP Lebanon Country Brief November 2022. https://reliefweb.int/report/lebanon/wfp-lebanon-country-brief-november-2022

Wu J., Wang J., Nicholas S., Maitland E., Fan Q (2020). Application of Big Data Technology for COVID-19 Prevention and Control in China: Lessons and Recommendations. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 2020 Oct 9; 22 (10):e21980.